Ukhurhe (rattle staff) with Ọ́bà Ákẹ́nzùa I
This staff was created to memorialize Akenzua I, an oba (king) who ruled the Benin kingdom in the early eighteenth century. A rebel chief called Iyase n'Ode challenged Akenzua's reign and civil war ensued. With the help of his military commander, or ezomo, Akenzua ultimately emerged victorious, and the iconography displayed on this ukhurhe refers to this military triumph. In Benin, elephants are a traditional symbol of chiefdom and, according to Benin oral literature, Iyase n'Ode had the ability to change himself into an elephant to vanquish his enemies. Here, Oba Akenzua stands triumphantly on an elephant holding a miniature ukhurhe and a stone axe head, an object associated with warfare and death. Leopards, the preeminent symbol of royalty in Benin art, flank the elephant on either side to suggest the oba's ability to regulate the power of his chiefs. Swords of authority called eben appear in relief along the shaft of the ukhurhe, and toward the bottom a crocodile, representative of the water deity Olokun, indicates the importance of overseas trade to the prosperity of Akenzua's kingdom. At the base of the staff, a second elephant most likely represents the ezomo; his trunk ends in a human hand holding medicinal leaves, a motif in Benin art representing victory and power.
Artwork Details
- Title: Ukhurhe (rattle staff) with Ọ́bà Ákẹ́nzùa I
- Artist: Ìgùn Ẹ́rọ̀nwwọ̀n (brass-casting guild) artists
- Date: 1725–50
- Geography: Nigeria, Court of Benin
- Culture: Edo peoples
- Medium: Brass, copper, iron
- Dimensions: H. 63 1/2 × W. 2 × (approx.) D. 3 in. (161.3 × 5.1 × 7.6 cm)
- Classification: Metal-Implements
- Credit Line: Ann and George Blumenthal Fund, 1974
- Object Number: 1974.5
- Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing
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